Three years ago, I had a brief article in the Boston Globe Magazine about Paul Eldrenkamp, a Newton builder and a leader in sustainable-builidng practices. I just did a search for him on the blog, and though I've quoted or mentioned him several times, I apparently never linked to the magazine story. 

So, I'm doing that here, post-dating back to then, just 'cause. I know, who cares, right?

Wolfgang Feist, founder of the Passivhaus Institut in Germany and co-originator of the Passive House concept, will be the featured speaker at a second annual gathering of Passive House building enthusiasts around Greater Boston.  

Paul Eldrenkamp, the Newton-based builder and building-efficiency leader who helped bring about the first gathering last year, said time, place, and registration fee have not been set, but the site will be near Boston, he says. The fee will pay for Feist's travel expenses.

From 10-2 on Saturday, green partisans will gather at Somerville High School for demonstrations, giveaways, and fellowship with their own kind.

Byggmeister, the Newton energy efficiency buidling contractor, will have a representative to evaluate your energy bills for what you might save, there'll be recycled kids crafts and recycled fashions (and you can bring clothing donations to do some recycling yourself), free basic bike tune-ups for people who ride over, and plenty more.

The event is free; maybe I'll see you there.

Simply put, if you haven't heard of Seth Godin, who blogs about marketing, you should check him out. I consider that a complete thought, and good content, all by itself.

But he's not really a sustainability guy ... actually, I think he is! OMG, yes he is — he's always talking about the long view, albeit in his realm of selling, rather than environmental. Yet another example of how sustainability is a very broad topic.

Paul Eldrenkamp, chairman of the residential task force, introduced the recommendations saying that some people in the room will be challenged by them, and some will be threatened by the. They represent "a dramatic shift, and it's not going to be easy and it's not going to be comfortable."

Some of the recommendations: Amend the residential building code with a maximum HERS (Home Energy Rating System) rating of 70, with a "stretch" code of 50. HERS is a predictor of energy usage, and 100 represents a standard home today.